Question

I need 4 examples of ambiguous sentences and discuss whether their ambiguity is structural or lexical.

Answer 1

Ambiguity or ambiguous sentences refers to phrases or words which have more than one meaning. For instance, when you hear a phrase and feel the need to counter question to understand the meaning of the sentence phrased is an examples of ambiguous sentence.

Structural ambiguity is when the entire phrase has multiple interpretations. However, lexical ambiguity in a sentence occurs only when a particular word is unclear.

1. I saw a man on the terrace with binoculars. This is an example of structural ambiguity.

2. I feel desserted. This is an example of lexical ambiguity. The person was perhaps meant deserted.

3. Look at the man with one eye. This is an example of structural ambiguity.

4. She fed him dog food, is an example of structural ambiguity.

All the above sentences can be interpreted in multiple ways as they are ambiguous. There is no clarity for understanding its meaning.